


dreamscape

by xylodemon



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Ficlet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-07-01
Updated: 2006-07-01
Packaged: 2017-10-29 13:45:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/320555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xylodemon/pseuds/xylodemon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>I had the girl, but I sent her away for her own safety, except she refuses to go.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	dreamscape

  * The night before, Harry dreams of when he was still a Muggle, when magic (if it existed at all, and the Dursleys were quite sure it didn't) was nothing more than dusty handkerchiefs tucked up a sleeve and rabbits pulled from an old, silk hat. A snake slithers past his feet; it tells him his hair wants cutting, and despite the summer heat, Harry wakes cold.
  

  * He divorces himself from the Dursleys on 31 July, 1997. He does it at 6.48 in the morning, with Hermione on his left and Ron on his right, and Remus and Tonks silently bring up the rear. Ginny makes herself Harry's vanguard, blocking him from Uncle Vernon's blustering, separating him from Aunt Petunia, who's armed with a skillet of burnt eggs. Her fiery hair clouds his vision as he wishes his sorry excuse for a family the worst, and 4 Privet Drive becomes another bad memory by 7.14.
  

  * McGonagall divides them so they can conquer. Remus to the werewolves; Shacklebolt to the other Minister; Tonks, Charlie, and Bill on a goose chase for Hufflepuff's cup. She packs Luna and Neville off to Beauxbatons to find allies on the continent, and when Ron isn't looking she demands Hermione write to Krum. Ginny refuses to be shipped away; she defies McGonagall the same narrowed eyes and lifted chin she used against Harry's family. Harry doesn't tell her he wants her to go because he can't, and he kisses her because he shouldn't.
  

  * Godric's Hollow is empty and cold, and Hermione catalogues the wreckage on three feet of parchment. Ron is strong in his silence; he grips Harry's shoulder with a broad, freckled hand and averts his eyes when Harry starts to cry. Ginny slips through the ruins like a wraith. She finds a dried lily pressed between two charred and broken stones (brittle and perfect, like the flowers Aunt Petunia would preserve inside her books), and she pockets it because Harry's hands are shaking.
  

  * Harry dreams of the Chamber of Secrets. His footsteps echo off the cavernous walls, and underneath the slow drip of stagnant water he can hear the basilisk inching across the stones. _I have the girl_ , Riddle says, but the chamber is empty. The diary bleeds quietly at Harry's feet. _I had the girl_ , Harry thinks. _I had the girl, but I sent her away for her own safety, except she refuses to go._
  

  * Her skin is cool under his hands, and he counts the freckles on her shoulder with the tip of his tongue. She smells of the gardenia soap Mrs Weasley keeps in the shower, and her small fingers twist in his hair. He shouldn't touch her, but he can't stop himself now that he's started. She kisses him softly, and Harry tries to pretend they're not at war. 
  




End file.
